The Four Seasons is an American rock and pop band that became internationally successful in the 1960s and 1970s.
The Vocal Group Hall of Fame has stated that the group was the most popular rock band before the Beatles. Since 1970, they have also been known at times as Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. In 1960, the group known as the Four Lovers evolved into the Four Seasons, with Frankie Valli as the lead singer, Bob Gaudio (formerly of the Royal Teens) on keyboards and tenor vocals, Tommy DeVito on lead guitar and baritone vocals, and Nick Massi on electric bass and bass vocals.
Originally slated as the Four Seasons‘ farewell album, Helicon instead heralded only a prolonged absence from the studio, and good thing — it is by any metric the most unappealing and forgettable record of their long career, and one is hard-pressed to imagine a more inappropriate swan song. Bob Gaudio‘s stiff, vacuum-sealed production continues in the nostalgia-meets-disco vein of the group’s previous smash “December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night),” and the more the music strives to sound contemporary, the more dated it sounds. Helicon is clearly an attempt to create an adult record firmly in step with the Four Seasons‘ age and stature, but the music is more awkward than mature, rendering the group as sad and obsolescent as an aging hipster oblivious to his faded cool.
The success of “Who Loves You” increased the popularity of the Four Seasons as a touring group and reignited recording unit, but when 1977’s Helicon album was released by Warner Bros., the climate was changing again, both for the group and for Valli. The new record yielded only one USA single, “Down the Hall”, which limped onto the Hot 100. In the UK they had chart hits with both “Down The Hall” and “Rhapsody” (with verses sung by Don Ciccone and Valli appearing to notable effect only as lead voice over group harmonies on the chorus). At the same time, Valli’s string of solo hits had come to an end as he parted ways with Private Stock Records.
Helicon saw Polci and Ciccone heavily featured as lead vocalists, Valli, besides his co-lead chorus vocal on “Rhapsody” and some backing vocals, only taking a brief bridge lead vocal on two songs that were largely sung by Polci, though on “New York Street Song (No Easy Way)”, Valli also clearly stands out over the group harmonies on two notable a cappella sections. Plus Valli took one solo lead vocal role on the album’s concluding song, the brief Gaudio-Parker-penned “I Believe in You”.
1. If We Should Lose Our Love (4:14)
2. Let’s Get It Right (5:17)
3. Long Ago (5:07)
4. Rhapsody (5:14)
5. Helicon (4:23)
6. Down The Hall (4:11)
7. Put A Little Away (4:09)
8. New York Street Song (No Easy Way) (4:49)
9. I Believe In You (2:59)
Companies. etc,
Released: April, 1977
Genre: Rock, Pop
Style: Soft Rock, Pop Rock
Length: 41:18
© 1977
Label - Warner Bros. Records
Originally slated as the Four Seasons‘ farewell album, Helicon instead heralded only a prolonged absence from the studio, and good thing — it is by any metric the most unappealing and forgettable record of their long career, and one is hard-pressed to imagine a more inappropriate swan song. Bob Gaudio‘s stiff, vacuum-sealed production continues in the nostalgia-meets-disco vein of the group’s previous smash “December, 1963 (Oh, What a Night),” and the more the music strives to sound contemporary, the more dated it sounds. Helicon is clearly an attempt to create an adult record firmly in step with the Four Seasons‘ age and stature, but the music is more awkward than mature, rendering the group as sad and obsolescent as an aging hipster oblivious to his faded cool.
The success of “Who Loves You” increased the popularity of the Four Seasons as a touring group and reignited recording unit, but when 1977’s Helicon album was released by Warner Bros., the climate was changing again, both for the group and for Valli. The new record yielded only one USA single, “Down the Hall”, which limped onto the Hot 100. In the UK they had chart hits with both “Down The Hall” and “Rhapsody” (with verses sung by Don Ciccone and Valli appearing to notable effect only as lead voice over group harmonies on the chorus). At the same time, Valli’s string of solo hits had come to an end as he parted ways with Private Stock Records.
Helicon saw Polci and Ciccone heavily featured as lead vocalists, Valli, besides his co-lead chorus vocal on “Rhapsody” and some backing vocals, only taking a brief bridge lead vocal on two songs that were largely sung by Polci, though on “New York Street Song (No Easy Way)”, Valli also clearly stands out over the group harmonies on two notable a cappella sections. Plus Valli took one solo lead vocal role on the album’s concluding song, the brief Gaudio-Parker-penned “I Believe in You”.
1. If We Should Lose Our Love (4:14)
2. Let’s Get It Right (5:17)
3. Long Ago (5:07)
4. Rhapsody (5:14)
5. Helicon (4:23)
6. Down The Hall (4:11)
7. Put A Little Away (4:09)
8. New York Street Song (No Easy Way) (4:49)
9. I Believe In You (2:59)
Companies. etc,
- Marketed By – WEA Records B.V.
- Distributed By – Negram B.V.
- Lyrics By – Bob Gaudio, Judy Parker
- Producer, Music By – Bob Gaudio
Released: April, 1977
Genre: Rock, Pop
Style: Soft Rock, Pop Rock
Length: 41:18
© 1977
Label - Warner Bros. Records
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